Hair loss is a scary thing for people. They come to us for help and as a Consultant, I always try my best to offer them the product or service that is going to be the right fit for them and get them the end result they are looking for. For me, it’s not about making a sale. It’s about helping my client’s solve their hair loss problem. I also want them leave our studio looking and feeling better than when they walked in.

I would like to think other hair replacement professionals would do the same but I had a consultation last week with a potential new client that told me otherwise so this post is dedicated to a “buyer beware” message.

My consult, we’ll call him Doug, was a 34-year-old male with standard hair loss. He had some recessions around his hairline and he was starting to thin out in the front. The rest of his hair was pretty well intact. His main objective was to rebuild his hairline and thicken up the front. My initial thought was that he would be a good candidate for a surgical hair transplant but I began the consultation by asking all my usual questions, including “have you done anything about your hair loss or are you currently using anything?”. His answer surprised me!

Doug went on to tell me that several years ago, when he had much less hair loss, he went to one of our local national competitors for help. They sold him a hair system. For those that aren’t familiar with what a hair system is, take a look at our website, but in short, a hair system is a good option for a lot of people but mainly someone that has some significant hair loss. They shaved his head and attached the hair system with a semi-permanent adhesive.

I couldn’t believe they would take someone so young and with such little hair loss, shave their head and put them in hair system. If he had come to me, I would have suggested Laser Hair Therapy at that point as a means of preserving the hair he had and thickening up what was starting to thin. I would have suggested he use some topical products, like dht Sensor, to stabilize the loss as well. This approach would have allowed him to improve his hair for a while, putting off the committment of wearing a hair system.

I’ll add, there is nothing “wrong” with what they did. If a client wanted a hair system or their hair loss required one in order to achieve the client’s desired outcome, their approach would have been fine, however in Doug’s case, there were several solutions on the market that would have been a better fit for him at that time, they just sold him what they offered instead of suggesting other options, even if it meant loosing a sale.

Not knowing there were other options and trusting those he went to for help, Doug wore the hair system until he realized it wasn’t a good fit for him. He took it off and went several more years feeling self-conscious of his hair loss before he came to see me. He’s scheduling a surgical hair transplant in the next few months and I think he’s going to be very happy with his end result.

The moral of the story is, you can’t always trust those you go to for help and that call themselves professionals. Not every hair loss solution is right for every client. To avoid the same situation Doug found himself in, you may want to consider using a hair replacement studio that has several options for you to select from. That way, you get a hair loss solution that fits your needs and your budget!